This Time
by Aleine Skyfire
Summary: It's raining. Neither of them wear their rings anymore. She lost her child; he fights to keep his. Both are seeking a second chance. Serious!fic. Merry Christmas!


**Author's Note:**

I've had this idea in my head for a looong time, but never enough drive or mental material to do it. I finally got it, just yesterday. Weird how it's just in time for Christmas, and wasn't originally a Christmas fic at all.

This is a serious fic. Not dark and maybe not depressing, but definitely serious. Enjoy it anyway!

**==This Time==**

She stands at the window, her arms folded, her gaze distant. Raindrops beat out a steady but powerful rhythm against the glass. It's too harsh to be soothing.

She feels him enter the room, sees his reflection in the window, before he speaks. "I'm leaving now." Quiet. Façade of calm covering utter weariness. She knows the feeling all too well. They're both tired.

"M'kay." Her voice doesn't crack, is as steady as his.

He pauses in the doorway, and she watches him, knowing what's running through his mind. How can two people so in-tune to each other grow so distant? It's a question she's asked herself over and over again.

She never gets an answer.

They stand there in silence for what feels like forever, close enough that either can take four steps to the other and hug, and far enough that neither will do it. At last, he says, "I did love you."

"So did I."

And after that, there's nothing more to say, because neither wants to say goodbye. He simply backs out of the doorway, and she's left alone again with the rain that's trying to dash its way through the glass.

* * *

_She hoped her pregnancy would help their marriage. But the stress of work, the distance of their relationship, and the pregnancy itself wore her down._

_She lost the baby before the second month._

_She hadn't even told him yet, because she'd been waiting for the right moment. Instead, he came home one day to find her crying her heart out in the bedroom. What should have pulled them together instead pushed them further apart._

_He buried himself in his work. She sought comfort from her father._

_In three months, paperwork lay on the table._

* * *

The hatch slams shut gratifyingly, matching his mood. He marches over to the pilot's chair and revs up the ship, shooting into the rainy sky perhaps a bit quicker than he normally would. It's a love/hate thing, these visits. He needs to see his son, and he hates what happens when he does.

A small, rational part of his brain tells him to be grateful for small favors, that at least she's letting him still _see_ the baby, even if they're fighting in court for custody.

He's glad when the ship shoots clear of the rain, clear of the atmosphere, clear of the planet's gravity well. He just wants to go home.

* * *

_Her pregnancy hadn't been easy on either of them. She'd always been irritable—he'd known and loved her anyway—but the hormones made it twice as bad, and __**he**__ was the one having to deal with it. He told himself it was okay: she'd get over it, and they'd be a real family. The baby would bridge the ever-widening gaps in their marriage._

_Then the baby was born._

_She wanted to keep him with her, and he argued that no sane person would keep a baby in those vicious jungles. To say that it was no place for a kid would be the understatement of the millennium._

_She retorted that she wasn't about to give up her work and move to his house, and he couldn't take the baby with him when __**he**__ went to work. She worked "at home"—she could handle it._

_What began as a heated discussion in the hospital turned into a legal battle in court._

_Neither wore their rings anymore._

* * *

"Mira!"

"Buzz!"

"Sorry… um… darn rain. Blinds you."

"Heh, it's okay. Fancy bumping into you!"

"We live in the same district."

"Well, _yeah_, but in the past six years I've lived here, I've never once seen you planet-side outside your property while off-duty."

"Yeah, well…" He rubs the back of his neck and gives her a sheepish look. "The groceries don't buy themselves."

She smirks. "Nope. Hey, you wanna grab a cup of coffee? I'm all chilled—this rain is cold."

"October rain can be that way," he says dryly. "C'mon, I know a good place nearby."

"After you, _mon capitan_."

* * *

"So, um, you're not wearing your ring anymore."

"Nope." She takes a sip of coffee, sets the mug down, and shakes her head. "Romac and I signed the papers a week ago."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"Me, too." She looks at him frankly. "Neither of us hit it off so well, did we? Looks like there's a thing or two about life they don't teach you at the Academy."

He nods slowly. "…Yeah."

"Fight's still going on, huh?"

"You mean you _haven't_ seen the news?"

"I don't go in for coverage on that kind of stuff. Especially when it involves my best friend."

He looks down, touched. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it," she says softly. "I'd rather hear it from you."

He sighs. "My lawyer's good, but so is Ozma's, and he's holding this stupid hearing at a standstill."

She blows at her hair. "…Craters. Just get it over with, already—anything's gotta be better than dragging this thing out longer and dragging your name through the mud."

He looks up at her wryly. "Thanks."

She blushes. "N-no, I didn't mean it like…"

"Mira—" he holds up a hand—"s'okay."

"Right. Sorry." She smiles sheepishly.

He shakes his head. "I don't know what I'm going to do if…"

"Even if you did win…"

"Star Command has daycare," he says firmly.

She shakes her head. "Still a one-parent family."

"I grew up with…" Or, on second thought, maybe that isn't the best example.

"What kind of life is that for a kid? One parent with custody, the other off on some carnivorous planet, the kid being raised between daycare, babysitters, and school…"

"Then what do you suggest I _do_?" he says impatiently.

She blinks. "I don't know. I'm just saying."

He sighs again, and silence falls over them. Until…

"…You could remarry."

He nearly spits out his coffee. "So soon after getting a divorce? That'll be a field-day _extraordinaire_ for the media—they're already going nuts as it is."

Her reply is stern. "How much is that worth against your son's future?"

He reacts as if slapped. She settles a firm gaze on him that's a lot more unnerving than anything she could have done a few years ago. At last, he shakes himself.

"…Maybe."

She nods slowly. "In the meantime, maybe I can help."

"Help?"

"Yeah. Believe it or not, my dad taught me a thing or two."

"Does Tangean legal dynamics—"

"Very much the same."

"You're kidding."

"I wish I were." She snorts. "So much for _superiority_."

He laughs incredulously. "If you really think you can help, you're more than welcome to."

She smiles at him, and it's a look that he hasn't seen in ages: her fierce devil-may-care grin. "Then let's go get 'em."

* * *

King Nova makes sure to attend his daughter's second wedding this Christmas—in fact, he goes so far as to give her away this time. He'd had a feeling that this day would come ever since she'd told him she was engaged the first time, and he'd even almost expected the groom this time around.

Six years ago, he would never have stood for it. But now… now he _understands_ much better, understands how they need each other. He knows what it's like to be alone, and he knows what it's like to raise a child alone.

So he can actually give them his blessing.

And when he sees Mira Nova-Lightyear walk out into the snow, baby Davy in her arms, and Buzz Lightyear's arm wrapped firmly around her—happier than maybe they've ever been in their lives—he knows they all made the right choice this time.

**==Fin==**

**

* * *

Author's Note:**

So, hey, it did _end_ with Christmas. I'm so happy to finally write this—I've had it in my head for at least a year and a half, and I'd forgotten about it until just yesterday. Don't ask what reminded me, 'cause I really don't remember. And it turned out much better than I'd ever dreamed it would—my writing style has really matured in the two years I've been on the site. (And present tense is fun to use—so much power if you get it right.) Can you tell that I'm a happy gal?

This idea was born when I was trying to work out how the Buzz/Ozma and Romac/Mira couples would turn out if they got married. I really don't think this scenario is all that far-fetched, and I did my best to keep everybody realistic as well as IC. If you don't like my handling of the couples, then just let me know what you think about the writing. I realize that juggling all three couples the way I did could be controversial.

Btw, this story is about 6 and a half years post TAB. Mira, Booster, and XR are _definitely_ no longer rookies. And, in case you wondered, the last scene means that Buzz won custody of his son Davy.

_God bless you all, and may you have a very Merry Christmas!_

_**Please review!**_


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